The Trouble With Lily
by ms-hufflepuff
Summary: James Potter is still pursuing Lily Evans’s heart in high hopes, but he is rather confused by her words from the previous year. His best friend, Sirius, isn’t helping either as he constantly messes up James’s chances. What’s a sixteen years old wizard to
1. Chapter One

A/N: Err…Newbie here. So be dears and r/r. :D Please?

Summary: James Potter is still in pursuit of Lily Evans' heart in high hopes, but he is rather confused by her words from their previous year. His best friend, Sirius, isn't helping either as he constantly messes up James's chances. What's a sixteen years old wizard to do? L/J.

Disclaimer: Everything belongs to J.K. Rowling except unfamiliar characters. Plot belongs to me, of course, so no stealing please.

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**The Trouble with Lily**

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**Chapter One**

A farmer was outside that day, harvesting his corns. It was mid-afternoon when he did this. The weather had been perfect for his little beauties, and there they stood, full of his pride. As he turned his back to pick a particular high-perched one, a gust of wind rushed past him. Surprised, he dropped his basket. On instinct, he turned around to see what had disturbed him. His eyes spotted a rolling train with rusted gold letters spelling out "Hogwarts Express". He rubbed his eyes to see if his vision had played with him. The train had disappeared. Feeling very astonished, the farmer raised his eyebrows and turned back to his work, deciding it was a trick of the light.

There _was_ a train, however, and it _was_ called the Hogwarts Express. In its compartments every fall were hundreds of students. Witches and wizards, to be exact. One of these witches and wizards was a boy named James Potter.

James Potter was a very handsome boy. He had messy dark brown hair and glowing hazel eyes that seemed to intrigue all the girls. On that particular first day of school, James was sitting in one of the train's many compartments. The last one to the left, actually. Three other people were in there with him – Sirius Black, Remus Lupin, and Peter Pettigrew.

Sirius and Remus were playing wizard's chess while Peter 'refereed' the game. Sirius was loosing terribly and he wasn't very happy with it. His eyebrows were scrunched into a sour look and curses were flowing out of his mouth every other second. Remus, however, was calm and paid no attention to Sirius's behavior. Peter was looking at the board rather intensely while munching on a Chocolate Frog's leg.

One would think they weren't worried about James's strange act, but they were.

"Stop moping around, Prongs," said Sirius hotly.

James looked at him out of the corner of his eyes and returned to watching the windows. He started muttering inaudibly to himself and waving his hands about in the air.

"Are you going to eat that?" asked Peter, pointing at the pile of treats next to James.

"No, Peter, go ahead," said James, speaking for the first time since his arrival on the train.

"Still thinking about our little Miss Evans?" asked Sirius, leaning against the compartment's wall. "Don't bust your brain, Jamesie. We need it for pranks."

James huffed and crossed his legs. "What did she meant by her comment?"

"Which comment?" asked Remus, looking up.

James coughed and started mimicking Lily's voice. "Inflate your head and then we'll talk."

Remus raised an eyebrow. "She didn't say that."

Sirius waved his hands impatiently. "Who cares? The important thing is that you shouldn't pay attention to what that Lily Evans says. You're starting to think too much, James. It's unorthodox."

"I beg to differ," said Remus. "What about that one time when she told him he'd better watch out during the game?"

"So he got hit in the head with a Bludger. It happens everyday!"

James's mouth opened to argue, but Remus beat him to it. "And what about that other time when she told _you _Gina Yates was–"

Sirius yelled loudly to quiet him. "Let's not bring up bad memories, okay Moony? And for your information, she was a very good snogging partner."

"I didn't need to know that," chirped James and Remus.

Just then, the compartment door slid open. Someone's head peeked through. "James Potter?" said the person. "You're wanted in the Prefect's compartment."

James waved the person away. When the person left, he stood up. "Thanks again for letting me have your place, Remus."

"You're welcome, James," replied Remus. "You actually did me a favor."

"Yeah, I know. I'm too nice for my own good," said James as he walked out.

"Why'd you give up your spot?" asked Peter.

"It's too much for him, that's why. All those meetings," answered Sirius.

Remus smiled. "It's because Lily's a Prefect too."

Sirius smirked. "I didn't know you had it in you, Moony."

"Don't judge a book by its cover, Sirius," said Remus simply as he cleared the chessboard.

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A few minutes after he left, James returned, muttering darkly to himself. His face was twisted into an expression similar to Sirius's during the chess game. He kept looking over his shoulders, and glaring at the front part of the train.

"What happened now?" asked Sirius when James slammed the door close.

"That bastard Snape," was his answer.

"Let me guess: he started talking about how you earned your place?" asked Remus.

James nodded as he started munching on a slice of pumpkin pie.

Remus sighed and folded his arms. "James, you know better than to take what Severus says seriously – quiet, Sirius."

"Lily was there!" whined James crossly.

Remus rolled his eyes at the ceiling. "So Lily was there. Was she even paying attention to you? Ah, see? I knew it. The reason you're always so awkward when she's around is because you're always considering what she would think of your actions. And yes, Peter, he does. Remember how James liked to dangle everyone last year? Whenever Lily passed by when he was doing it, he'd throw the wrong curse at his opponent and they'd end up with an extra mouth or something. We need to change that this year, Prongs. There's only one year left before we say good-bye to Little Miss Evans. If you screw up this year, I doubt you'll have a chance of getting her next term."

Sirius huffed. "Who says he have to get Evans? There are plenty of other squids in the lake, Prongs." James scrunched his face at the term. "Just a couple of winks or maybe a smile and you'll reel them in. The time you wasted on Evans could've been used to chase ten girls."

James gave him a blank look. "Padfoot, don't treat her like an item to be possessed."

The rest of the ride was spent in silent although Peter snored quite loudly. Ten minutes before the train stopped, the same person who had came for James before stopped by.

"James Potter is wanted in the front," he said. "Head Boy says all the Prefects have to be off the train first. You'd better change into your robes."

Once again, James waved the boy away. "Sirius, are you coming with me?" he asked.

"How could I miss seeing you screw up in front of Evans?" grinned Sirius. "Wake up, Peter, and change into your robes. There's a fire in the front. They want us to go out."

Peter immediately sat up in alarm. "Alert the captain!" he cried.

James and Sirius roared with laughter. "Peter, you are so gullible sometimes," said James, wiping an imaginary tear from his eye.

"SOMETIMES?" asked Sirius as he pulled on his robe.

Remus shook his head disapprovingly at them and returned to his book. "They're leaving first, Peter, so it's you and me again."

After a quick wave, Sirius and James departed to the front. The other Prefects were there with the Head Boy and Girl. All of them were standing in a crooked line in front of the train door. The Heads were whispering rapidly to each other, while the Prefects did the same.

"What's with all the commotion?" asked James as he neared them.

All looked at him.

"What?" he asked.

"Hey, Sammy," said Sirius cheerfully to the Head Girl. She blushed and hid her hands into the outskirts of her pockets.

"What are you doing here, Black? It's for _Prefects_ only," sneered Snape.

Sirius gave him a glare. "Well, it seems Dumbledore has gone mad, letting you serve for another year. Be careful, _Snivellus_. Wouldn't want to lose your 'hard-earned position' now, would we?" With that said, he walked over to the Head Girl and draped an arm over her shoulder. They began talking immediately.

With his best friend "working his magic" in some corner, James was left with no choice but to find some company to talk to. Obviously, the person he headed to was Lily.

"All right, Evans?" he said, positioning himself right next to her.

She gave him a glare and returned to chatting with a Ravenclaw Prefect. The Prefect wasn't paying attention to her anymore, though, now that James had come over.

"Hi, James," she said, making a move to be between him and Lily.

"Oh hi, Esther," he said, moving to be next to Lily again.

"How was your summer?" asked Esther.

"It was all right. We went on a trip to France to visit a few cousins, but it wasn't that great because they were a boring lot."

She gave him a sympathetic look. Lily gave him a pathetic glare.

"Have you no manners, Potter?" she asked. "We were having a conversation."

"Oh don't be such a prick, Evans," said James joyfully; happy she had spoken to him. "I know you're honored to have me grace your present."

Lily gave him a disgusted look and sauntered off to talk to the Head Boy. He could hear her whispering loudly about how 'undeserving students' shouldn't be picked for such 'an important role'.

James had time to blow a raspberry at her before the Heads calmed them both down. A few minutes later, the train came to an abrupt stop. The Heads went down first, followed by the Prefects. Sirius had gone over to James again, and they were standing chatting to Hagrid.

"Had yerself a good summer?" asked Hagrid merrily.

"Jamesie didn't," said Sirius. "He got stuck with his boring French cousins."

"The ones in Paris?"

"You actually remembered them?" asked James, amazed. "Yea, those bratty little seven years olds who demands ice cream like there's no tomorrow."

Hagrid gave a loud laugh. "Yer better be on yer way. The First Years are gettin' down."

With a wave, Sirius and James left on their way to the carriages. They spotted Remus and Peter getting into one with who seemed like Frank Longbottom, a fellow Gryffindor, and his girlfriend Alice.

"Let's just find another one then," said Sirius. He started looking around. In just a few moments, he grinned a Cheshire-cat smile. "C'mon, Prongs." Without hesitation, he grabbed James's arm and dragged him to a carriage – Lily Evans's, to be exact.

James's eyes widened when he saw who was inside. "Hell no!" he cried, fighting to back away. Sirius was stronger, however, and in no time had gotten his friend into a seat. James huffed, crossed his arms, and looked sideways.

"All right, Evans?" asked Sirius, imitating a James sweeping his hair back. James jammed his elbow into Sirius's ribs.

Lily gave him a glare. "Black, don't you have anything better to do than to annoy me?"

"Of course he doesn't," said a voice.

Sirius turned to the voice that spoke. It belonged to a girl with dark brown hair and dark brown eyes. Even though she was sitting, he could see that she was tall – very tall.

"Hello to you too, Deidre," he said casually. "Stalking Kneuf again?"

Deidre glared and kicked his knee. "What was that supposed to mean?"

"Oh nothing," said Sirius innocently. "I just thought you had a…how should I put it? A 'knack' for him."

Deidre scoffed and folded her arms. "Like the one you had for Moaning Myrtle in our First Year?"

Sirius's mouth opened and turned to James. "How did she know that?" he whispered angrily.

James shrugged. "How should I know?" he said innocently.

Before Sirius could say anything, Lily stated loudly, "Can this be a quiet ride, please? I have enough a headache without all you people arguing."

Sirius shook his head sadly. "Our poor Little Miss Evans," he said sympathetically. "What you need is dear James to cheer you up." He bended over and pushed Lily into James's lap. She shrieked and slapped James's face. James closed his eyes and pursed his lips together.

Lily smiled meekly. "Umm…sorry?" she said.

James pushed her off his lap and she landed on the floor. "I said sorry!" she exclaimed, dusting herself and getting back on the seat. By this time, the carriage had already reached the castle. Sirius, being the "gentleman" that he was, opened the door and made James wait until everybody got out.

"It's part of gentlemanly etiquette," he said. "You should really learn it, James. It should get you a few girls."

James gave a fake laugh. "Says the person who eats spaghetti with a spoon," he said.

"Hey, that was an experiment."

James rolled his eyes as they headed up the castle's stone steps.

When he and Sirius got into the Great Hall, they found that everyone had gotten there already. Heading to their usual place beside Remus and Peter, they sat down. Just a few moments later, the First Year entered. After the Sorting, Dumbledore gave his speech and food started to fill the tables.

"Let the feast begin!" said Dumbledore.

When he started his third plate, Sirius started feeling paranoid. He felt someone was staring at him. He turned his head to see who it was, but everyone was too engaged in their food and nobody was looking anywhere else except at their friends. He shrugged and resumed to gulfing down his pumpkin juice.

"What's in this stuff?" he asked suddenly. "Do they just squeeze the pumpkin until all the juice is out?"

Remus shrugged. "I think it's manufactured."

"So this is fresh?"

"Possibly," answered Remus.

"How long does it take for pumpkins to grow?" asked Sirius.

"Sirius, why are you asking questions about _pumpkins_? As long as they're in your goblet and doesn't give you a stomachache, who the hell cares?" said James.

"Don't be so moody," was Sirius's reply.

James did not say anything back.

A few minutes later, Sirius said his stomach was feeling queasy and 'excused' himself. He went up to Dumbledore and asked for permission. Dumbledore nodded a yes to him (his eyes were twinkling merrily when he said this) and Sirius went on his way. Quite some time after that, he returned. By then, everyone had left for his or her dormitories, so he made his way there also.

"Why'd you take so long?" asked Peter when he entered their dorm.

"Probably shagging someone again," snickered Frank Longbottom.

"Yea," said Sirius, "Alice is a great kisser."

"WHAT?" shouted Frank and everyone laughed.

"I was somewhere," said Sirius, rolling his eyes. "No one trusts me anymore."

"Because you can't be trusted," said Peter very quietly.

"What was that?" said Sirius sharply.

Peter shook his head and climbed into his bed. Sirius gave him a suspicious look before jumping on James's bed and poking him. "How are you doing, Jamesie?" he asked. The lights turned off.

"Good before you woke me up," said James groggily.

"You know you love me," said Sirius, smiling.

"I don't swing that way, Black," he said, turning on his sides. He suddenly sat up. "Did you hear that?"

"Hear what?" asked Sirius, looking around.

"Someone screamed, 'POTTER!'"

Sirius shrugged. "I don't know. You're hearing things again, Prongs. Get some sleep." With that, he jumped off James's bed and onto his. Then he covered himself entirely with his blanket.

His covers could be seen moving up and down as his body shook with laughter.

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A/N: Thanks to MaraudersIce05 for proof-reading. :D All good criticisms are welcomed – even flames because I find them all funny. ;p


	2. Chapter Two

A/N: A 'little bit' late, but better late than never, right? ; Much thanks to MaraudersIce05 for beta-ing and "prodding." This fic is also located at Fiction Alley, btw.

Summary: James Potter is still in pursuit of Lily Evans' heart in high hopes, but he is rather confused by her words from their previous year. His best friend, Sirius, isn't helping either as he constantly messes up James's chances. What's a sixteen years old wizard to do? L/J.

Disclaimer: Everything belongs to J.K. Rowling except unfamiliar characters. Plot belongs to me, of course, so no stealing please.

**The Trouble With Lily**

**Chapter Two**

James woke up abruptly that morning from the bad feeling he had in his stomach. Whether it was from the feast or not, he didn't know, but it gave him a queasy feeling nevertheless. He rubbed his eyes to get the sleep out and then reached for his glasses. After putting them on, he blinked a few times before truly seeing his surroundings. All the other inhabitants of the dorm were still sleeping soundly, so James decided to be "considerate" to them and quietly got out of bed.

He gently closed the door behind him as he got inside the bathroom and headed for the sink. Turning on the faucet, he waited for a big amount of water to come into his cupped hands before washing his face with it. Then he proceeded in drying his face with his towel. As he reached for his towel, however, he saw a shape right behind him in the mirror.

"Myrtle!" he cried, turning around. "What the hell are you doing in here for?"

Moaning Myrtle gave him a shy look before answering. "I was wandering around," she said.

James gave her a disgusted look along with a raised eyebrow. "And you ended up in my _bathroom_?" He heard a shuffling of noises from outside and a moment later, his friends entered the bathroom. "Doesn't anyone bother to knock?" he asked impatiently.

"You were making such noises," said Peter sleepily, "that we thought you were 'drowning your sorrows' again."

"What're you doing in there with Myrtle?" asked Frank curiously.

"_Nothing_," insisted James as his friends continued to stare at him in a strange way. "She was wandering around and _somehow_," he cast Myrtle a dark look when he said this, "landed in our bathroom."

"Did she see anything?" asked Sirius, raising an eyebrow suggestively.

"I am not listening to this," said Remus, putting fingers into his ears and walked back to bed. "Next time, wake me up for a better show."

James rolled his eyes at the ceiling. "Been reading again, Sirius?" he asked.

Sirius smirked. "At least reading didn't land me in the bathroom with Moaning Myrtle."

"I'm still here, you know!" shouted Moaning Myrtle angrily. She had previously placed herself on top of the toilet, but now moved to be face-to-face with Sirius. Tears were once again dripping down her eyes. "I liked you for liking me," she said tearfully, "but I'm not forgetting this!" And with that, she disappeared through the wall.

"That was certainly entertaining," said Peter, clapping his hands enthusiastically.

"Right," said Sirius, pushing everybody out the door. "But I have some business to attend to so go away." And then he slammed the door.

"Since we're up and at it," said Frank cheerfully, "let's just get dressed for class."

"I don't understand how a person can be so positive in the morning," grumbled James as he started fixing his bed.

"Since when have you started making your bed?" asked Peter, staring at James wonderingly.

"Ha ha," said James and threw a pillow at Remus. "Wake up!"

Remus stirred a little, rolled onto his stomach, placed a pillow over his head, and made a loud snoring sound to state that he was still sleeping.

"I don't think anyone bought that," said Peter truthfully as he unloaded his trunk and pulling out a few textbooks.

Remus groaned. "I have a headache," he said.

"Well deal with it," said James and pulled on his robes.

The bathroom door opened and Sirius came out with a towel wrapped around his hair. He was dragging his feet over to his bed and when he got there, slipped under the covers and pulled it over his head.

"When did you grab a towel?" asked Peter who was already finished dressing.

"There's a little thing called magic, Peter," came Sirius's muffled voice. "If you haven't learned that in the last six years, I suggest you ask for a transfer."

Peter opened his mouth to argue, but Frank interrupted by saying, "He's kidding, Peter."

Peter huffed and made his way to the bathroom, slamming the door in the process.

"WAKE UP, REMUS!" yelled James again.

Not only did Remus bolted up, but also Sirius. "What the-?" asked Sirius in bewilderment. "What was that?"

"Get up," said James.

"Try asking nicely next time, Jamesie," said Sirius, getting out of bed. "It'll do you wonders."

"Gentlemanly etiquettes?" asked James sarcastically.

Sirius scoffed. "Gentlemanly etiquettes are yesterdays' news."

"You only mentioned it yesterday, Sirius," reminded Remus.

Sirius shrugged nonchalantly. "So?"

"He's only saying that," said Peter, submerging from the bathroom, "because Andrea Mathews slapped him yesterday for trying to sneak into the girls' dorm."

"Hey, I only wanted to see if they had better furniture than us."

"When did this happen?" asked Frank, staring at Sirius.

"When the sun didn't shine," said Sirius.

His roommates gave him a blank look. "We never could've guessed," said Frank sardonically.

Remus rolled his eyes and grabbed his robes. "Anyone going?" he asked.

"I'll go afterwards," said Frank. "I have to question him until he cracks." Frank then turned to Sirius's direction and stared at him intently.

"We are not in Divination, Frank," said Sirius calmly. "And for your information, it happened late last night."

"Thanks for clearing that, Captain Obvious," said Frank just as Remus came out. "That was fast."

"Isn't it always," said Peter. "You know, you could've just asked me when he did it instead of pestering him like that."

Sirius gave Peter a look. "Peter," he said calmly, "There will come a time in your life when you learn to keep quiet. But until then, I guess I'll just have to strangle you to keep you silent."

Peter gave a weak smile.

"It's more fun pestering him, Peter," answered James.

Frank rolled his eyes and grabbed his robes, but before entering the bathroom, said, "You guys can go on ahead. I'm meeting Alice later so you don't have to wait for me."

Sirius clapped his hands together and pretended to talk like an excited schoolgirl. "Like oh my gawd, aren't the lovebirds, like, cute?" he asked in a high pitched voice. "I, like, must go tell _everybody_!" And he ended his act by skipping over to James with his hands swinging madly by his sides.

Frank stared at him. "James, remember to keep an eye on him. He's been kept away from humanity for so long, he has summer syndrome again."

"Have fun with your little girlfriend, Longbottom," said Sirius as he grabbed his knapsack and headed for the door. Remus, James, and Peter followed suit and gave a wave before leaving. Frank waved back.

"Some people are just born for others to poke fun at," said Sirius, sighing dramatically as they descended down the stairs. His friends laughed.

"That's your philosophy of life?" asked Remus.

"And a mighty one at that, mate," said Sirius contentedly.

Their first class that morning was Transfiguration with the other Sixth Year Gryffindors. Their teacher, Professor McGonagall, was in a particularly bad mood that morning (for reasons unknown) and it displeased her very much to find that James and Sirius had not done their summer homework. "You two," she told them, "how do you expect to pass this class if you refuse to do work?"

James had shrugged at her. "I don't plan to do work, Professor. My talent will get me along fine."

Professor McGonagall didn't think that was a very good answer for some reason, and had taken points off. After taking off points, she turned to Sirius and scolded him. "Black, I had expected you to do better. Your father was an excellent student during his time here."

"Is that why he's so messed up now, Professor?" asked Sirius of her darkly.

She gave him a stern glare, but her eyes shown a sympathetic look. "Black," she started, but he cut her off.

"No, never mind," he muttered. She shook her head at him and went to the next desk to give more lectures.

After her evaluation of the classroom, Professor McGonagall went to the front and began her yearly speech. "N.E.W.T. Transfiguration is one of the hardest courses you will ever take during your stay at Hogwarts. It requires patience, determination, and absolute focus. Many students from the past have been driven mad by this course and many have found it fit to drop it. I tell you now – if you are not prepared to do my requirements here, expect to get a Troll by the end of this term. Any of you who are not ready for a commitment may leave now and head down to the Headmaster's office, where he will give you a schedule change."

Everyone stayed in their seats. Professor McGonagall felt a tint of pride inside her; it was just what she expected of her House.

"Moving on, I will give you a taste of N.E.W.T. transfiguration right now so you know what to expect throughout this year. Ms. Evans," she said to Lily, who was sitting in front of her, "Please pass this around." She handed Lily a stack of parchments, which Lily accepted and passed around.

When Lily came to James's desk, he smiled charmingly at her. She gave him a very deadly glare, something he didn't expected, before moving along.

"What did I do?" he whispered to Sirius. "She's usually not like this at the beginning of the school year."

Sirius shrugged at him, but turned away to hide a little smirk. James gave him a suspicious look but said nothing.

The parchment Professor McGonagall gave them was an outline of the year. It was basically an organized lesson plan. After Lily returned to her seat, the lesson started. It moved along very fast and before they all knew it, break came. "You will go outside for twenty minutes," informed Professor McGonagall. "Use the time wisely; go to the bathroom, get some air. Lunch won't be until another two hours. You will return here after your break and we will continue on with the lesson."

As soon as James got out of the classroom, he stretched. "How long did we sit inside there?" he asked.

Remus shrugged. "I think two hours. Classes started at eight and it's around ten now."

"Double classes sucks," commented Sirius. "My butt hurts from sitting for so wrong." He patted his bottom to prove his point.

Remus and Peter gave a laugh, but James didn't for he was looking at Lily. "Hold on," he muttered, heading towards her. Lily was standing with Deidre and the other Gryffindor girls, chatting. When James came over, they all stopped talking. Marylin Lucky gave a snort, but Maggie Bennett giggled. Lily gave a glare. "Go away, Potter," she said coldly.

He gave her a frown and crossed his arms. "What's with you today, Evans?" he asked. "You're usually not this grumpy."

Lily scoffed. "I can't believe this," she said to Deidre.

Deidre didn't give a reply.

"What the hell did I do?" demanded James, his temper rising at being blamed.

"What did you do?" asked Lily. "_What did you do_? I'll tell you what you did, you inconsiderate moron." She jabbed at his chest. "You carved stupid things into my bed posts, soiled my sheets with God-knows-what, rummaged through my belongings, oh, and here's a reason you would like: you're existing!" With that, she stormed off.

James's mouth gaped open and he sputtered indignantly. "But-but I didn't do those things!" he yelled after her.

Marylin gave him a look. "Potter, if you do something wrong, at least apologize and face it like a man." She headed after Lily.

"Don't listen to them," said Maggie. "I know you didn't do those things."

James was about to give her a smile for her comment, but the thing she said next wiped it off his face: "I know you're too much of a gentleman to do those things. Besides, you never had guts like Sirius to do something like that." She, too, hurried off.

James's mouth was now opened even wider. "W-what?" he yelled after her. "What the hell was that supposed to mean?"

Deidre gave him a pat on the shoulder. "Calm yourself, James; clear minds always work better. Oh, and you're pathetic." She gave him a curt nod before walking away.

Out of the corner of his eyes, James could see his friends approaching. "What's the matter?" Sirius was asking as he drew nearer. "What did she say?"

James slowly turned around. "Sirius," he said leisurely. "I am going to kill you."

"Oh! So you found out about my little prank," said Sirius calmly, brushing through his hair. "Funny, eh?"

"I'll show you funny!" shouted James as he charged at Sirius. Sirius gave a big grin before dashing off.

Remus shook his head. "They need to get their priorities straight," he said.

Peter gave a nod of agreement.

When dinner time came around, James was still slightly upset at Sirius and didn't speak to him. Sirius was getting rather annoyed at James's stupidity. He had pulled this stunt many times in the past but had no memory of James being this offended. _What's the difference this year?_ He wondered as he bit into a slice of chicken. Then he came to a conclusion: Lily had somehow brainwashed his best friend into a monster during summer and got him thinking pranks were bad.

"No, Sirius," said Remus as if reading his thoughts.

Sirius looked at him. "No what?"

"Lily did not brainwash James during summer, Sirius," said Peter.

Sirius turned to him. "How would _you_ know I was thinking that?" he demanded. "You can't even tell the difference between a potato and a gnome!"

"You were mumbling," replied Peter.

Sirius snorted and returned to his food. "Whatever," he said. "So what's up with you, Prongs?" he asked of James.

James didn't respond.

"You never used to be like this."

Again, James didn't answer.

"Kneazle got your tongue?"

"Stop interfering, Padfoot," said James suddenly.

"What do you mean interfering?"

"Don't ruin things with Evans for me, Sirius."

"Oh, so _now_ you're interested in her? After five years of taunting, discriminating and so forth, you choose _now_ to become interested?"

James glared at Sirius. "You were well aware of this, years ago," he snarled.

Sirius scoffed and crossed his arms. "James. I have never told you off for anything you've done, but getting with Evans is a bad deal."

"Why is it a bad deal?" inquired James.

"Well, she's got red hair for one thing. It'll blind your poor little eyes and cause you to walk into walls, poles, Quidditch stands, strange Fourth Years, giggling–"

"That's not a very good reason, is it, Sirius?" asked James.

"I can name many others out of the top of my head."

"Where was all this when we took Divination, Padfoot?"

"I'm not kidding, James."

"I have to agree with James on this one, Sirius," said Remus, cutting in. "He is entitled to whoever he wants to date. We can't stop that."

James nodded. "Remus have spoken. We shall obey."

Sirius huffed. "Well, fine. Just don't come crawling back when anything goes wrong."

"I don't have a problem with walking, Sirius," said James, grinning somewhat.

Sirius reached over and ruffled James's hair. "Aww, I could never stay mad at you."

"Let's not go there," warned Remus lightheartedly.

Peter snickered.

Sirius laughed.

"I think those pranks were a little bit too far, though," said James suddenly. "Don't pull something like that on her again."

"Is Prongs sticking up for his little girlfriend now?"

James's cheeks turned slightly pink. "I am not," he said defensively.

Sirius snorted, Remus gave a small chuckle, and Peter continued eating his food. Afterwards, the conversation turned over to a fierce Quidditch argument that Remus, not surprisingly, ended.

And just like that, everything went back to normal.

Or so they thought.


End file.
